Report: Joel Embiid lobbied 76ers for Jimmy Butler trade ahead of Paul George deal | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

Joel Embiid reportedly tried to get the Philadelphia 76ers to bring back a former teammate during the offseason.

According to Yahoo Sports Vincent GoodwillThe 76ers “tried to commit Miami” to a deal for Heat star Jimmy Butler before eventually reaching an agreement with Paul George. Embiid reportedly “wanted a meeting with Butler” and “pushed him,” according to Goodwill.

Report on Embiid and 76ers’ pursuit of Butler comes after ESPN’s Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst reported that the six-time All-Star “indicated” to Miami that he wants the team to trade him on Thursday.

Prior to that report from Charania and Windhorst, Butler alluded to a trade request in his postgame press conference following the Heat’s loss to the Indiana Pacers.

“I want to see myself get my joy back playing basketball. Wherever it is, we’ll find out here very soon,” Butler said Thursday. “I’m happy here off the court, but I want to get back to being somewhat dominant, I want to play basketball and I want to help this team win, and right now I’m not doing that.”

Butler was asked if he could find his joy on the court with the Heat, to which he responded, “probably not.”

Butler, who has led Miami to a pair of Finals appearances in the past five seasons, is having his worst season in more than a decade. He’s putting up just 17.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game as the Heat started the year 17-15.

It’s clear Butler needs something to help him find his spark on the court, and a change of scenery might be the best option.

According to Charania and Windhorst, Butler did not give the Heat a list of preferred destinations and is “open to playing anywhere other than Miami.” Perhaps the 76ers, who fell to 13-19 with a 139-105 rout of the Golden State Warriors on Thursday, will once again engage in talks with Miami about Butler.

Butler’s time in Philadelphia was short as he played in only 55 regular season games and 12 postseason games. He left for the Heat after less than a full season with the 76ers despite the team reportedly Offering him a maximum contract of five years and 190 million dollars..

While Philadelphia wasn’t able to have much success with Butler (they made it to the Eastern Conference semifinals), the 76ers could make an offer in the coming weeks as they look for something to help turn their season around.